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Saturday, February 4, 2017

HABITS SPECIAL .............Why Google, Twitter, And LinkedIn Employees Are Kicking These Seven Work Habits

Why
Google, Twitter, And LinkedIn Employees Are Kicking These Seven Work Habits

We asked insiders at
some of the top tech companies which bad habits they’re trying to cut out of
their workdays. Here's what they said.

By this time in January, some of that initial excitement around
New Year’s resolutions may be starting to fade. Here we are, just a week away
from the whateverness of February. Work has officially kicked back into high
gear. That yoga class you took on January 6th ("2017! The year of
yoga!") was great, and maybe the one you dragged yourself to a week later
was fine, but last week you just kind of skipped it (you had good reasons, you
swear).

Listen, it’s okay. Even the
most productive people have a hard time sticking with their resolutions. Making big, lasting habit changes is hard. So
for inspiration (and solidarity), we asked insiders at some of the top tech
companies to share which bad habits they’re trying to cut out of their
workdays. After all, sometimes getting yourself to stop doing something is a
little easier than learning to do something totally new.
And knocking out those small, achievable goals first can
help you achieve the tougher ones later.

"I'm used to constantly checking my phone during the
day," says Sara Haider, a senior manager in Periscope’s engineering
division, "so I'm aiming to switch it to ‘do not disturb’ mode during
meetings so I can stay focused and keep my mind and thoughts on the subject at
hand."

That’s a challenge when the subject at hand is one of the world’s most
recognized mobile apps. "When you work on platforms like Twitter and
Periscope," Haider concedes, "there can be a lot of notifications
because something is always happening in the world."

Erica Lockheimer, senior director of engineering growth at LinkedIn,
is committing to the same thing. "I am no longer going to be distracted by
my laptop or phone in meetings," she vows. "I am going to be present
and fully engaged, and will enjoy every moment working with talented teams to
solve problems and come up with new strategies. The rest can wait—the moment is
more important!"

It’s easy to settle for a sad desk lunch when you’ve got a packed
day. But schlepping to the lunch room for a quick bite by yourself isn’t much
better, says LinkedIn’s Ish Verduzco, a social media and event coordinator.
"Eating alone is not a break, it's isolation."

So in addition to kicking this bad habit, Verduzco is taking on a
new one. "In 2017, I am going to have lunch with two new people each week.
Not only will this build relationships," he says, "it’ll also expand
my knowledge across the business."

"I'm dropping the need to chime in to every email,"
Google product strategist Luke Leonhard declares. "When people do great
work, I'll make the effort to tell them in person, instead of joining in on the
congratulations thread."

Email is convenient, but sometimes it’s too convenient, and it
winds up incentivizing weak and ineffective communication. So Leonhard is
making physical conversations his default. "When I have feedback on a
product spec, I'm scheduling a 10–15 minute meeting, in person or via Hangouts,
to quickly and more effectively give feedback. If it isn't worth an in-person
meeting, I doubt it's worth me writing an email, and the recipient having to
read and interpret it."

Leonhard says he’s already begun to implement this, and has
already "noticed I spend less time frantically typing on my keyboard at my
desk, and more time interacting with real people—making the workday feel a bit
more fun."

Leonhard isn’t the only one who wants to spend less time rifling
through his inbox. Fadia Kader, senior manager of music partnerships at
Twitter, says, "This year I'm focusing on unsubscribing from newsletters
and email subscriptions that I don't read regularly, and being more mindful of
the things I sign up for." 2017 will be the year she can finally
"keep my work inbox organized and clutter free."

Even tech workers still cling to analog work habits that digital
tools can make more efficient. No longer, says Wade Morgan, an enterprise sales
development representative at LinkedIn. "I’m going to start using the
calendar app to plan out my duties for the week and let go of making constant
in-the-moment decisions." Getting calendar alerts, he hopes, will help
‘increase efficiency and make me more accountable" day-to-day.

Alex Josephson, head of global brand strategy at Twitter, is also
kicking his reliance on old-school organizational habits that don’t work as
well. "I've decided to give up entirely on physical notebooks and pens.
Using apps like Google Keep is the best way to travel light to meetings, jot
down notes, ideas, and to-dos," he says. "Plus, it reduces my carbon
footprint."

"I have stopped pretending that sleep isn't important, so I
have made it a point to get some this year," jokes David Roter, head of
agency development at Twitter. But kicking his sleepless-nights habit doesn’t
mean overhauling everything. Roter is making smaller adjustments to help him
score more shut-eye. "While I'm not giving up Netflix, I keep the mobile
phone in the kitchen and meditate at least once per day. I actually feel sharper
and more focused at work."

Googler Luke Leonhard is actually kicking two work habits.
"I'm no longer spending time making internal presentations
pixel-perfect," he says. "I'm sticking with using templates and
Slides Explore to make presentations look great, without spending 20 extra
minutes adjusting alignments and picking colors." It’s just not worth it,
he says.

By ditching the perfectionism, Leonhard plans to free up time to
try something new. "Add up that saved time, and I can learn a little
Spanish, go outside for a run, or give yoga a try." Namaste.